Good vacation, but...

We traveled from December 2nd to December 9th. Overall it was a great tip and we enjoyed the resort, although 3 out of 4 of us ended up with the stomach issues. I recovered after about 4 days but my kids, aged 3 and 5, did not fare so well. I took them to the doctor upon the return from Punta Cana and their stool samples were sent to the lab for testing. Today I received a phone call from Toronto Public Health and they told me that my 3 year old daughter had salmonella. This is extremely disappo [... lire plus]inting and worrisome. I wanted to write a really nice review for the resort as we really enjoyed our stay, but will not do so now. Clearly, food handling/cleanliness is a problem.

Wicked resort

Was my first time going to an all Inclusive and I had such a blast. I can not wait to go again. I would highly recommend sunscape to anybody. The pools were clean, the beach and staff were super amazing. I loved the food, lots of places to chose from. The room service was excellent aswell.

Great time with a great place and people!

Everything was wonderful. The food so yummy. The entertainment great and fun! The sun club is definitely worth it. Rooms were so big and nice. Everything was very clean and the average works well. We were treated like gold. Spoiled in every way. I want to go back! Everyone was so amazing.

The restful experience that I really needed !!

I must say, the best part of this resort is the staff....they make it happen for their guests!. Also, I was quite impressed with the Filet Steak at the French Restaurant....the meat was imported from Argentina, who have the most tender beef....due to "lazy beef"....from the flat lands. As for the buffet restaurants, one can always find something they will truly like due to the diversity. As of now, my favorite fruit is "Papaya". Thanks to the Sunscape team!

Excellent resort

I loved it. It was very clean and maintained well. The food was Great, I'm a very picky eater and I ate everything there. The employees were very helpful and friendly. I would go back without a doubt.

Excelente!

The location was awesome, only a short walk from our room to beach and amenities. Food and drinks were delicious with variety. Staff was really nice and helpful. Night entertainment was very talented.

Amazing resort!!!

It has been a great vacation in Sunscape Bavaro Beach Resort! Entertainment team was one of the best I've ever seen! Willy Wonka has made our vacation unforgettable!!!! I also would like to say many thanks to the kitchen chief. All the restaurants were out of this world delicious!!!!!! I would say French is number one in my list. The resort is average size, but it's beautiful with a lot of palms!!! Rooms are clean. Thank you to all staff members who helped us to remember this vacation for  [... lire plus]many many years!!!!!

Just okay

There were some excellent staff members with great customer service but this wasn't wide spread or consistent. It took 3 tries to move into a room which had enough beds, or had AC that worked or didn't have a leak from the heavy rain (understandably not the resorts fault about the rain but the receptions attitude was "don't worry, it's ok... you're on vacation" instead of doing something about it). The regular rooms at Bavaro are quite basic with no room service or hotel info in the room. The "S [... lire plus]un club" (VIP) rooms and service perks in the Sunscape Dominican part of the resort were more comparable to what you'd expect from a 4 star resort as a Canadian than the Sunscape Bavaro part of the resort. They have room service and more friendly and helpful staff. Juan at the Sun Club swim up bar is the best!

Great escape!

Sunscape Bavaro offered us a great escape with our boys. Overall, the experience was great. Of course, there were a few hitches and snags but all the travelers there seemed to have the same issues. There needs to be more efforts so that we get the room we booked!! And shouldn't double beds be standard size, not this large twin bed! Unfortunately, this made our nights a little bit sleepless. People are very smiley, courteous, and nice but they also don't hesitate to make up stuff (we called it  [... lire plus]the Dominican truth!). The concierge's nasty trick to get us to tour other resorts and the 90 minute presentation to enroll in some travelling program was NOT a fun experience and a total waste of time. It did, however, give us a 100$ voucher towards the amazing zip-line/monkey expedition. Wonderful time that was! All these small issues aside, we had a great vacation!

Beautiful resort. First Class

Sunscape was immaculate, the grounds were constantly being groomed. The staff were most helpful and pleasant. Good choice of day trips, we loved the City Tour with Luna Tours to Santo Domenico. Good value, and most educational. Our room was in block 28 and was enormous, bar fridge that was stocked complimentary daily, coffee maker, plenty of thick thirsty towels, two rain forest shower heads in the largest bathroom we have ever had. The choices of restaurants was above and beyond [... lire plus]. Selection of buffet was constantly being changed and everything was delicious, great mixture of salads, fresh breads of every description, creative desserts. Beach BBQ and bars available all over. Cute Coffee shop open 24 hours a day with selections of pasties and sandwiches. Entertainment nightly. Beach was always very busy, giant retaining blocks sit 50 feet in the water, the shore line looks like it is being seriously reduced. Security were ever present, throughout the property and along the beach. We left supplies for the local school which gladly accept any donations. Giving children in the city or villages money or treats is not encouraged at all. The idea being that it sends the wrong message. Taking enough $1 US bills is a good idea, any tip is most gratefully received. No Complaints. Thank you Rick our travel agent for making all the arrangements smoothly. Terrific value. Marguerite Moskalyk

Not a 4 star

food was good. waiters and waitresses good.[ winston and katherine.] room clean.advertised as a new resort but it was just renovated.beaches and ocean looked great in pictures but a big disappointment. beach was suffering from erosion which made it hard to get to ocean because of incline. ocean had breakers to help prevent erosion but don't know if it helped as ocean floor had many drops. my wife could only swim in the ocean once because of this.we feel air transat should of informed you people  [... lire plus]of these conditions so we could of made changes. unfortunately other than the weather and food we feel we didn't get our moneys worth

Great Resort

The resort is a clean, new, modernly decorated resort with a most perfect kiddie pool. The drinks were fab, although service was slow as it was March Break and very busy. The buffets offered a variety of healthy options as well as funfare. The à la carte restaurants were good especially the steak house and Asian cuisine. Music was pumping during the day adding to the fun vibe enjoyed by all. The beach unfortunately was a bit of an eye sore although totally swimmable. Overall, we thoroughly enjo [... lire plus]yed our stay and recommend this resort.

Great time

Any issues we had with the resort were minor and easily overlooked based upon the great time we had. We went with two young children and really enjoyed the pool. All of the staff seemed to go out of their way to engage our kids, it was really great.

Did not live up to expectations

I would like to preface this review of the Sunscape Bavaro Beach Resort in Punta Cana by saying that we had an OK stay at the resort; however, it did not live up to our expectations. I believe that the next time we travel, we will be holding the travel agent's feet to the fire a little more than we did this time before selecting a final resort destination. This was a very easy sale for our agent - in hindsite, we believe that we were definitely not asked enough questions by the agent to define  [... lire plus]what we were looking for on our vacation. As they say, the devil is in the details. This is how our stay started. At the check-in, we were well greeted with the promise of some type of tropical drink, which came much later, but while we were doing the check-in, the phone rang and the check-in attendant picked up the phone and tried to service us and the person on the phone at the same time, which lead to confusion for all three parties involved. Once the check-in was sorted out, we were greeted by our special "Concierge" who was assigned to us for the week. Little did we know at the time that this was not the "real Concierge", but a salesperson for some type of "time share" that Sunscape is trying to sell to all families that visit this resort. He tried to have us sign a contract on the first night (after we had been travelling for over 16 hours) in exchange for $200 dollars worth of "resort" coupons to be mainly used for the on-site spa. After we refused, since it was now dark and there was not enough light to view the small print on the contract, he asked us to stop by again the following morning to read and sign the contract. We did not stop by the next morning to sign the contract, but to tell him that we were not interested. Meanwhile, every day afterwards (even on our last morning at the resort), we had these "special" Concierges soliciting us to go to a VIP breakfast for the "time share" sales pitch. For us, this was very very very unpleasant, as we were on vacation, not a sales convention. On day two of our stay, our toilet started leaking from the base and we would end up with a puddle of water where both of your feet are situated when going to the lew. Making a long story short, we complained and they sent different people to look at the problem, but it was not until we went to see the "real" Concierge (Maria) later at night who solved the issue for us by having us switch rooms (two rooms, as there was four of us travelling and we needed the two to be close to each other). She even came with us to help with the room switch. This somewhat reconcilliated us with the place. We are forever fans of Maria the Concierge. Airport - two hours wait to get into the country - two and a half hours wait to get out of the country - completely disorganized at all levels, including Air Transat, and very frustrating Rooms - needed to call to have the fridge restocked with water and pop, regardless of tip - needed to call to have beer in the fridge - hot water was nowhere to be found - if we had hot water three times in one week, we were lucky Buffet - always having to pursue the server to have a glass of water with your meal - even if leaving a tip - same issue with coffee at breakfast Specialty Restaurants - needed to also pursue server to have a glass of water with your meal - excellent service after ordering your first drink, as when they saw that it was getting empty, they would bring you another one. If, in the meantime, you felt like trying something else, too bad. Pool - incident in pool on our first full day at the resort - guest threw-up in the pool - at the corner of the stairs heading inside the pool - guest was attended to discreetly by "lifeguard" but swimmers remained unaware of incident - pool was never evacuated or cleaned for the rest of the week - guests in the pool were never aware of what took place and this was the swim-up bar pool - we never went back Beach - nice sandy beach - a lot of litter coming in from the ocean - very unpleasant - plenty of interesting and fun activities that are lead by the staff - that was a highlight - waitresses are very busy, they did a fairly decent job bringing drinks - they work hard - constantly solicited by tour operators close to the beach in the Resort section Food - general - the food was good, although a bit lacking in flavour, there was plenty of it and a great variety - there was a good choice of specialty restaurants - the fact that we did not have to reserve restaurants à la carte was a good thing - the pizza bar was much appreciated by all - the bartenders were always attentive and courteous Theatre & Entertainment - some great shows were lined-up at the theatre and we thoroughly enjoyed the variety and the pool table - excellent music was played in the Lobby - the atmosphere was quite festive and relaxed - the free Wifi in the lobby did not meet our needs - it was intermittent and weak - the coffee shop was great, had some neat desserts and mini sandwiches Air Transat Rep - our Air Transat Rep was not there the first morning that we were scheduled to see him - a replacement rep from another airline had stepped-in to help - this replacement rep turned out to be very helpful and we booked our only excursion (Bavaro Runners) through him - we finally met our Air Transat Rep by chance on the 4th day and he was very aloof and standoffish - not the kind that gives you confidence if you need a friend Excursion - the Bavaro Runners excursion was the best that we have ever made in the Carribean All this to say that we come back with some mixed memories, mostly happy, but with some which left a sour taste. Needless to say, the Dominican Republic will not be a choice destination in our near future.

Family Vacation

We enjoyed our vacation to Sunscape Bavaro Beach & Dominican Beach. Fast and friendly check-in. Wish the Lobby had real furniture instead of bean bag chairs. The food was great. We recommend Chopsticks, French Restaurant & Steak House (no reservations required). The buffets were also great (hot, fresh, lots of variety). Really liked the coffee shop in the Lobby. Room service was slow but good. We had to request Mini bar service daily (taking a note to the front desk helps). The resort ha [... lire plus]d lots of staff during the day. Lots of lounge chairs and towels were plentiful. Always lots to do with the entertainment crew. The resort was clean resort but the beach needs work.

3 star resort

Rooms very clean and bright-- grounds excellent-- had to call for water for our rooms -- as the water is undrinkable--3 nights-- 7 calls in all -- finally went to the concierge-- resolved-- not enough staff in the dinner area-- beach good --staff very friendly -- gradtuies were expected -- told how the driver- tour guides--- etc -- pay poor and they live on our generosity -- too much- felt guilty all the time--

A really nice resort

We travelled here on Feb.11-21st, 2017. There were some mixed reviews but you can't please everyone. This is a lovely resort that was re-opened by Sunscape in December 2016. Apparently this area was hit be a hurricane in October and the beach has definitely suffered. They have these huge geotobes, which are eyesores, to prevent further erosion but it is fine to swim just not pretty for pictures. However, if you walk either way 2 minutes and the beaches are stunning. They don't allow you t [... lire plus]o reserve chairs before 8:00 a.m. and if you do they take your things to lost and found - gotta love that. You really don't have to reserve chairs as there are plenty. The Sunscape Bavaro Beach and The Sunscape Dominican Beach are on the same property so there are chairs are all over the place. Rooms: We loved our room - king bed Housekeeping: Excellent Food: My husband really enjoyed the food but I actually became very ill 3 days in. I had some caesar salad at the steakhouse and I think that was the culprit. I never eat lettuce or uncooked veggies when in any of these countries but I made a mistake. So, most of my time was spent on the balcony. I had to make a trip to the medical clinic and unfortunately had to go to the hospital to get IV fluids and blood work and turned out to have a bacterial infection/travellers diarrhea. The hotel actually sent someone from the hotel with us and she waited till we were done and went back with us. Her name was Patricia and I have to give a shout out to her. So it was a very expensive day for us and made me sick to think we had spent good money and I couldn't enjoy anything but the last day. A word to anyone booking in these countries - brush your teeth with the bottled water even though they tell you it is okay to brush your teeth with the tap water. I was told by the physician at the hospital that you should always brush your teeth with the bottled water. I would also suggest that people come with antibiotics packed in there luggage as a preventative measure. I had a co-worker that also just came back from another spot in the Dominican and she took Dukarol and she still got sick on her last day but she started the antibiotics right away. I have to say the people at this resort really do care that there guests enjoy. i was even offered room service at no charge because I was so unwell. However, I was feeling 99.9 percent better so that I could enjoy my last day on the beach. Thank God it didn't rain that day as out of the 10 days we had four days of rain. We purchased the wifi for the week and then had to renew another three days. The prices change with whomever you speak with which I thought was kind of odd. My husband spoke to one guy and he gave a price so we waited till our regular guy was back on the desk and he gave us a better deal. I believe it was 80.00 for the week and it was really good. It even worked on the beach. Face Time was not that great but that takes up more bandwidth but speed wise for email it was great. Building 11 is the best. Anything for rooms 11211 and higher are the best as you are close enough to the lobby but not too close. If we went back there we would request this area for sure. They have a 24 hour coffee bar and that was a godsend for me. You can get get all kinds of specialty coffees, Twinning tea and some chocolates and sweet and the staff are super sweet. The only bad thing about this hotel was that in the lobby, they had these ridiculous bean bag chairs. Anyone 50 plus who got in one of those, never got out without making a total fool of themselves. They definitely need to get rid of those. Maybe they had them when it was another hotel. The beach towel service was fabulous. They were open at 8:00 and you didn't need a ticket. Before I forget, you also didn't need armbands - wonderful. A la carte restaurants - You didn't need reservations. However if you were not there by 6:15 p.m. you would have a two hour wait. Buffets - The Sunnyside Grill was by the beach and they would have a big paella going. It was smaller than the main buffet but outside they were grilling burgers and sausage. My husband had a burger almost every day and enjoyed it. They also had a pizza bar by the main pools and it was constantly busy. It looked good. I think this is it. I would go back here but a little scared at the moment to do that. Maybe next year.

Beautiful, Cozy Resort

This resort is so beautiful with all its natural vegetation, example: palm trees, Bambo trees, flowers and very well kept gardens and greeny. The staff were outstanding with there serves and always with a smile. Everyone was very hard working and always willing to help, this did not go in noticed and thank you for making our stay amazing. Everyone from our maid service, servers in the restaurants and buffet, front desk and most importantly the explorers club, thank you Michael and Anni. Now fo [... lire plus]r my family and I the beach is always the most important to us. Even though part of the beach was eroded away we still found it very enjoyable. People the eroded part of the beach is dead centre to the resort, if you go right or left of the eroded part you will find very comfortable, relaxing and beautiful. There is nothing you can you about the force of Mother Nature except rebuild which is what they are doing. My only negative review would be the no reservations for the al a chart restaurants, they have a first come first based. This does not work plan and simple. When you are operating a full capacity and 100 people show up to the same restaurant and you have seating only for 50 people there is a problem. Beside that I loved everything else about the resort. Rooms are modern, simple and very clean. Wait staff are there to meet your every need. Lobby staff will go out of their to help you find an answer and any question you might have. The Explorers Club has amazing child care so you can enjoy some one on one with your spouse. Thank you again to everyone at the Sunscape Bavaro Beach Resort for making our vacation so pleasant :)